Assam Chili

ronnyb123(Zone 9)May 17, 2014

Has anyone ever grown this chili plant called "Assam". It is not the "Ghost" from Assam but a separate entity altogether. It is a Capsicum annum, not a Chinese variety. These are long slender pods (cayenne type). I am just trying to find info on it. One guy says it has 800,000 SKU, some just say it is super hot, others just hot. These are either from India or Mexico but I get more India then Mexico in the searches.

Based on the images in the few results found (one being Reimers which I normally take with a grain of salt), I'd hazard a guess that this is just another case of someone renaming an existing variety.

If I was a betting man I'd say that the "Assam" you're looking for is the said to be most popular / widely grown / commonly used pepper in India; the Pusa Jwala. If it is, then the 800k SHU claim is way off. Based on my growing it out I'd say 100k - 150k max.

Thanks Ottawapepper. If it is a Pusa Jwala, I can live with that. I believe you could be right and this is just another name of a chili that people are trying to sell. There is just no data out there on this and Reimers descriptions I dont trust either.

A few brands simular are the Khorika Jolokia from Assam or a Teja Indian.

Ya, the guy claiming 800k might be referring to the Naga Jolokia PC-1 but he'd still be way over on the heat.

Josh, I may be having a senior moment but I'm pretty sure the PC-1 is a C. frutescens. Based on pictures on the two sites I found, the so called "Assam" pods grow down. The PC-1 pods grow upward like Thais etc.

I'm still in the Pusa camp ;-)

Then again,

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I dont know guys. after reading this, I think it is another naming issue. I do not believe it is this chili though. There are no pods yet, but the closed flower point down.

The real deal is a Chinense, but there are also Annuum & Frutescen versions (shown here) grown across the world which are no where near as hot. The anuum version is sold under the name PC-1 in the US and the heat level is medium/hot (at best) despite the claims of 'ebay seed sellers'.